Revelations
by Disenchantment
Summary: After a slipup in the interrogation room, Grissom must admit to his relationship with Sara. WIP Rating just to be safe. FINALLY! Last chapter is up.
1. Chapter 1

Authors Notes: I've had this story in my head for ages; I've just never had the patience to write it all out. As usual, these wonderful characters don't belong to me. I'm just borrowing them. I promise that I'll return them in mint condition.

"So," Nick started, "when are we going to meet the woman who stole Gil Grissoms' heart?"

Grissom glanced up from his pile of paperwork in the break room to not only see Nick, but Warrick, Catherine, and Greg all standing in front of him. Looking back at the stack of papers he took of his glasses and gently rubbed his temple. He let out a long sigh knowing that there was going to be no way drop the subject without raising more suspicion.

It didn't shock him that the entire lab knew about his mysterious girlfriend. It was his fault for letting it slip in the interrogation room.

"You really want to meet her?" Grissom replied looking back up at his team. They all nodded and tried their best to mentally persuade him to say yes. "Fine." Taking out his cell phone he held down the '5' button connecting him to Sara.

"Oh! Lucky girl." Greg said sitting down at the break room table, "She gets a spot on speed-dial. I bet we don't have that privilege."

The others followed Greg's lead and sat down, all with a cup of coffee in hand.

"Shut-it Greg. The man's on the phone!" Warrick replied exasperatedly, "Besides, I want to hear this conversation. This could mean that hell might actually be freezing over."

He could feel himself let go of whatever was bothering him when he heard her voice on the other end. The others noticed the change as well. Their usually uptight boss suddenly was relaxed and calm. Worry lines from years of working in the lab disappeared and they all swore some of his grey hairs turned back to dark brown.

"This must be some woman." Nick whispered watching his boss transform from workaholic to an unrecognizable lover.

They listened as he invited her over to the lab for dinner with the rest of his team, reassuring her that it was a slow night in the lab and everyone was dying to meet her. After a few moments of silence on Grissom's end his eye lit up, she said 'yes'. The rest of the conversation was short and to the point, yet again telling her that everything's going to be okay.

He hung up the phone and slid it back in to his pocket. "She's on the way to the office to pick up some files for work; she'll be here in 10 minutes." He replied.

"Awesome!" Nick said with more enthusiasm than Grissom had ever seen come from the man. "Is she hot?" Greg added quickly.

Grissom couldn't help but chuckle at the question. "If you mean beautiful Greg, then yes, she's hot" The word 'hot' coming from Grissom's mouth as a way to describe a woman was not something heard everyday and caused Greg to giggle.

"So how long have you two known each other, much less how long have you two been dating?" Catherine asked once Grissom sat back down at the table. This was the first reasonable question anyone had asked all night, which shocked him coming from Catherine. He was expecting more of a 'Is she good in bed?' kind of question or something along those lines.

"Well..." he started, trying to mentally come up with a way to explain how he met Sara without giving away too much detail as to her identity. "I first met her during an Entomology conference at Harvard twelve years ago. She was absolutely brilliant in the field even though she had never taken an Entomology course in her life."

"How the hell was that possible?" Greg asked, looking confused.

"She paid attention. Asked thought provoking questions. She had this energy to learn that I had never seen before." Grissom continued, looking around the room at nothing particular. "I approached her after my lecture and asked her out for coffee. We hit it off immediately, but I had to come back to Vegas the next day. So I gave her my contact information and made her promise that if she ever wanted a job as an Entomologist she would come track me down."

"Did she go in to Entomology? Because one of you is scary enough, I don't think the world could handle two Grissoms." Warrick said with a laugh.

"No Warrick, she chose a different career path that lead her to the west coast." Grissom replied with a look of nostalgia. "But we still stayed in contact all those years and it wasn't until she got a job transfer to Las Vegas did I see her again."

"How long ago was that?" asked Catherine, playing with the swizzle stick poking out of her coffee. This was so unlike Gil, to stay attached to one woman for all these years. Maybe it was like him, but she had never considered that option.

"When she came to Vegas? Almost seven years ago." Grissom replied back, looking anywhere but the four people in front of him.

"So you guys have been dating for SEVEN years and you've never told us!" Catherine said rather shocked at Grissoms revelation.

"No." Grissom said chuckling to himself. "It took me five and a half years to get my head out of my microscope to ask her out again."

"Why did you wait so long?" Nick asked.

"I was afraid that I would be rejected. I wasn't the same man I was ten years ago. I thought she would have moved on to better and younger men." Grissom said, dejectedly. "Hell, I was afraid that the woman I had fallen in love…"

All four choked on their coffee when the word 'love' escaped Grissoms lips.

"…with all those years ago had changed. I didn't want to go back and be disappointed." Grissom was playing with the end of his sleeve, folding the fabric, buttoning and unbuttoning the two small buttons that held cuff in place. He didn't dare look at the rest of his team.

"So wait… hold on… you fell in LOVE with a woman you met for one day." Warrick asked. This was becoming too unreal.

"Yea, I guess." Grissom shrugged. "It made me a believer of love at first sight." He finally looked up and saw looks of sympathy coming from Catherine and Greg and looks of admiration from Nick and Warrick.

"What happened when she came back to Vegas?" Greg asked anxiously. "You can't just leave the story at that. This is becoming the most interesting thing I think I've ever heard in my life."

"Please continue." Nick said, refilling his coffee mug and offering the pot to those around him. "Just make sure none of us are drinking when you decide to make any more personal revelations."

Grissom smiled. A genuine smile, one like no one had ever seen before on the face of that man. "Why is all of this so hard to believe, so shocking?" He asked. He could see the discomfort on the faces of those around him, so when Greg answered first it was a shock to hear the youngest CSI take a stand.

"It's just in all the years we've known you, you haven't been the most open with your emotions, except for anger." Greg explained, referring to the many altercations with Ecklie.

Picking up from where Greg left off Nick continued, "You've been so confined to your world of bugs, that it didn't seem possible to have enough room for a woman between your tarantulas and work."

Catherine and Warrick nodded in agreement, Nick and Greg explained in better words than they could. The past five minutes were more of a shock than hearing that even Ecklie was married and had a daughter.

All five of them sat in silence for a moment before Greg asked, "Can we hear what happens at the end? Does the prince get the princess?"

Again Grissom smiled his beautiful smile, "After… last years 'incident' involving Nick." He tried to step carefully around that subject because it was still tender after all these months, "I finally called her and asked her out to dinner. I realized that life was to short to not know if I had a chance with the woman who stole my heart in that coffee shop twelve years ago."

Grissom paused for a moment, thinking how far he had come in the past year and a half. How much he had changed and grown. It was the most wonderful thing to have ever happened to him.

"She hadn't changed." Grissom continued, smiling. The others could see the reappearance of the man they saw on the phone only minutes ago. "And I wished that it didn't take me so long to realize what I had… There were so many time when I thought I had lost her, so many time where I wanted to give up, so many times where I pushed her away when she tried to get to close."

Catherine was the first to speak after a lengthy and slightly uncomfortable pause. "Griss, that was…" She couldn't think of anything to complete that sentence, she only spoke to break the silence. Grissom had opened up more in the past ten minutes than all the years she'd known him.

Greg, picking up on Catherine's awkwardness completed her sentence, "… that was Oscar worthy Mr. Gil Grissom." He was successful at breaking the tension and after a beat everyone laughed.

"Actually I have a favor to ask of all of you." Grissom said as he reached in to his pocket pulling out a small box. He placed it in the middle of the table. "Do you think it would be to soon?"

Not a hundred percent positive of where he was going Catherine reached out and picked up the box and opened it. The diamond caught the light and refracted around the room, showering the walls in tiny rainbows.

"God Grissom, it's beautiful!" Catherine exclaimed. Warrick, Nick, and Greg just stared at the ring, unable to find the words to express what they were thinking at that moment.

"How long have you had this?" Nick asked staring at the beautiful diamond centered on a platinum band. It was simple, sophisticated, and very much a ring Grissom would pick out.

"About a week." Grissom replied, finally looking each of his CSI in the eye. "I guess I haven't gotten enough courage to actually go for it." He shrugged as Catherine slid the velvet box back to him.

"The question is," Warrick started, "does she love you enough to spend the rest of her life with you?"

As many times as Grissom had thought about the situation that was his one fear, that she wouldn't and doesn't love him. "Ah Warrick, you just asked the million dollar question." Grissom replied, opening and closing the box just to keep his hands busy. The more he talked about proposing the more nervous he was getting and the others saw the sudden shift in emotions. "I know she does. I'm just scared that I'm seeing something that's not there. That…"

Catherine interrupted him in an attempt to calm his already shot nerves. "Gil. If this woman has know you for twelve years, kept in contact with you for five years not to mention you were a thousand miles apart, spent the past five and half years waiting for you to make a move, then actually spending a year and a half making you the happiest man alive. I say she's in love Gil. She's very much in love."

The others nodded in agreement. Content with their answers Grissom put the box back in his pocket and asked one last question, "Do you think I should do it tonight after dinner?"

"With all of us watching?" Greg asked. "Don't you want to do it some place romantic? I mean we're you co-workers, I'm sure we would ruin the mood or something."

Grissom replied looking at the group. "You guys are my family, my friends, and most importantly people who I care about. I want you to be there. Beside I'm going to need the moral support."

"Then I guess you already know the answer to your question." Nick said, smiling at Grissom.

"What question?" Sara asked as she leaned up again the doorframe. No one had heard her open the door leading to the break room and her voice seemed to shatter the fragile aura or the room.

Grissom watched as everyone's faces went pale when they realized that she was standing there, his Sara. It was almost funny to see their reaction knowing about Sara and his rocky non-relationship. All the while not knowing that it was Sara whom he was talking about.

"Are you guys okay?" Sara asked noticing the color draining from her co-workers faces.

"What are you doing here?" Greg asked in a panicked whisper. This was neither the time nor the place for Sara to come in on her spare time.

She though she saw glances of fear pass between the eyes of everyone but Grissom. Sara looked at them and grinned, "I was on my way here actually when Grissom called and invited me out to dinner."

If it was at all possible, Catherine, Nick, Greg, and Warricks faces all went three shades lighter. "I'll be right back I need to go grab those files from Grissoms desk before we head out." Sara could barely wait until the door was fully closed behind her before laughing.

They stared at Grissom. If there was ever a moment for mental overload for the CSI this was it.

"Wha…?" Catherine started.

"Is Sara…?" Nick attempted to say.

"You're going to…?" Greg stuttered out.

After a few seconds Warrick was the first person to speak in comprehendible sentences. "So you're telling us that it's Sara. It always has been Sara. And if tonight goes right it always will be Sara."

"To sum it up nicely, yes." Grissom simply said.


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Part Two! Same disclaimer as the first part. Thanks to everyone who reviewed, it really means a lot to me. :)

Sorry it's taken me so long to update. I've been emotionally dead this past week. As always review make my day!

Edited to add some small details. I doubt anyone would/can notice, but it was bugging me.

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After a few seconds Warrick was the first person to speak in comprehendible sentences. "So you're telling us that it's Sara. It always has been Sara. And if tonight goes right it always will be Sara."

"To sum it up nicely, yes." Grissom simply said.

"Wow." Catherine said, finally beginning to comprehend what just happened.

"Grissom." Nick started after a few moments of quietly conversing with Warrick and Greg. "What we're about to say is strictly man to man, so we're going to ignore the fact that your our boss for the moment."

Grissom just looked at the men and had a pretty good idea as to what they were about to tell him. He nodded his head slightly signaling the guys to continue.

All three men looked Grissom in the eye, "If you even think of hurting Sara, we'll hurt you a thousand fold." Warrick said in the most threatening voice he could muster for the situation.

"If I do hurt her, you'll have to get in line behind myself." Grissom said, meeting each man's eyes. "I love her more than life." He paused for a moment and continued. "If it came down to it, I would step down from supervisor to… make sure we would be happy… together." Grissom finished looking away, back down to his hands which were folded in his lap.

The last admission drove home everything that Grissom had said in the past half an hour. He was sacrificing his career and everything that he'd work for, for Sara. Everyone knew the repercussions that would result from Ecklie, the DA, or the Sheriff finding out about the relationship between Sara and Grissom. Not only could it compromise any and all of the cases but the entire lab. They knew the risk and were willing to take it, for the sake of love.

And when Sara entered the room with two manila folders tucked under her arm she was greeted with smiles from everyone at the table. They knew that she was in safe hands.

"Are we ready to go?" Sara asked the group. She received a collective 'yes' and everyone began to shuffle around the room gathering their belongings.

"Sara?" Greg asked her quietly as she made her way out the door and in to the hallway. He let out a large sigh and continued, "I'm glad it's Grissom."

She turned around and looked him in the eye and replied, "Me too Greg, me too." They both shared a quick smile before continuing down the hall.

Grissom stood back watching Sara lead the group out of the break room, admiring her instinctual leadership. "Grissom?" Catherine asked placing her hand on his shoulder, snapping him out of his thoughts. "I'm glad it's Sara."

He turned around and looked at her, smiling, and replied, "Me too Catherine, me too."

Everyone piled in to one car, Grissoms. Sara sat next to him in the front and Greg, Warrick, Catherine, and Nick all crammed in to the three-person back seat. Without thinking Grissom grabbed Sara's hand once they pulled out of the police station parking lot and gave it a gentle squeeze. Glancing over at Sara, he smiled softly, wordlessly reassuring both of them that everything was okay. Neither one realized what they were doing, but the back seat exchanged silent glances of admiration at how easy it was for both of them to fill the roles of lovers.

"Grissom?" Greg asked, sounding a little in pain. "How much longer?" He winced as Grissom made a left turn which caused the door handle to ram further in his side.

"Not much." Grissom replied glancing quickly up into the rearview mirror. "You should know Greg. We're going to the same diner as we always do."

"Yea, but I usually don't have a door handle jabbing me in the ribs." Greg replied.

Nick glanced over Catherine at Warrick and silently caught the man's eyes. Warrick grinned and nodded slightly as to not draw the attention of the youngest CSI. The next left turn Grissom made Nick and Warrick shifted all their weight to their left successfully trapping Catherine in a man sandwich and sending Greg back in to the door handle.

Greg's face contorted with pain and all he could squeak out was, "Ow…" This caused Nick to burst out laughing and Warrick followed suit when he saw the look on Catherine's face, who was still trapped 'uncomfortably' between the two men.

Sara turned around in her seat to assess the situation and just replied in the most serious motherly tone she could fake, "Don't make me come back there and separate you guys."

Without missing a beat Warrick replied, "I don't think Grissom would appreciate that."

"I wouldn't mind." Grissom replied keeping his eyes on the road almost afraid of what he would see if he looked in the back seat. "Just as long as you save room for me."

The fragile composure of the group was broken. Nick, Greg, and Warrick all had tears streaming down their face, Catherine was laughing so hard that she had moved in to the silent laughter phase, Sara snorted whenever she tried to take a breath, which then caused everyone to go in to another fit. Even Grissom was laughing, a hearty belly laugh that shock his entire body.

When they finally reached the diner a little composure was present in the car, but when Greg accidentally tripped over his shoelace and did a face plant in the parking lot, it was quickly lost. It took the group twenty minutes to make it from where Grissom parked to their usual table in the back of the diner.

"God, I don't think I have ever laughed that hard in my entire life." Nick said, wiping away a stray tear. "Grissom, your comeback was priceless. 'Only if you save me room.' That was great!"

Grissom just smiled at him and replied, "Every once in a decade I'll come up with a quote worthy phrase."

Everyone was quiet for a moment, looking over their menus even though they knew what they wanted.

"By the way, I'm paying" Greg said, glancing at the desserts. When he looked up the entire table was staring at him. "What?" he said with a smirk of satisfaction plastered on his face.

"How are you paying for all of us?" Sara said unable to imagine how big this bill was going to be. She'd seen how much food the boys could shovel down.

"Let's just say I placed a risky bet and won." Greg replied, still studying the desserts. He couldn't settle between the cheesecake and the chocolate silk pie; so he decided on both.

They ordered their food and Grissom asked the group, "So what do you guys think about the possibility of Ecklie being your direct supervisor?" Grissom had no plans of letting that actually happen, he just needed something to get the attention away from him and Sara. When he felt the group was sufficiently distracted he took a pen out of his pocket and quickly jotted a note on a napkin, folded it and slid it across to Sara.

'_I love you.' _It simply read. Sara smiled at him and took out her own pen, wrote a short reply, folded the napkin and slid it back. _'I love you too.'_

Greg noticed that Sara and Grissom had barely touched their food when it arrived, leaving it in a cold heap on their plates, too absorbed in their own thoughts. He could figure out what was distracting Grissom, but Sara's thoughts were still a mystery. In an attempt to pull her away from her troubles he said the sexist, crudest, joke he could think of; and it worked he got her full, undivided attention which in it's present form was lighthearted frustration.

Grissom smiled a silent reply and studied Sara, whose attention shifted to Greg, offering a quick sarcastic remark to a sexist joke she had overheard. He took out his pen and wrote two short words with a shaky hand.

Catherine saw the inconspicuous note passing between Grissom and Sara and the movement out of the corner of her eye caught her attention. She reached out and intercepted the secret note without Sara noticing that Grissom had offered another response.

'_Marry me.' _Catherine quickly read, and was determined not to let her shock be obvious to the others. Looking up at Grissom- who was still in astonished that his note was taken, she realized how exposed and fragile he was at that moment. That moment that was supposed to be Sara reading those two words, not her.

Taking a pen out of her purse she added a quick message at the very bottom. '_Not here. Not now. You can do better.'_ Catherine handed the note to him and watched his face while he read it. He looked confused, but when he looked at her it was an acknowledgement that she was right.

"Grissom what do you think?" Warrick asked, knocking Grissom out of his thoughts.

"About what?" he quickly replied, trying to not make it that apparent that he wasn't listening.

"Going down to the fountains to watch a show. None of us are in a hurry to get back to the lab." Greg said, finishing up the last bites of his cheesecake.

Catherine looked at him and silently conveyed that the fountains at the Bellagio would be an appropriate place for him to ask the silent question that was written on the napkin. He smiled at the boys, "It sounds like a great idea. Do you want to walk there or drive?"

"Walk!" Greg quickly responded. "I'm not getting in the back seat of your car with those three. I'll call shotgun if all else fails."

Grissom chuckled at the memory of those four in the back seat only an hour earlier. "We can walk, it's only a few blocks away."

"Sounds like a plan." Nick said sliding out of the booth followed by Greg and Sara.

"I gotta go pay." Greg said quickly swiping the check before anyone could reach for it. "And don't worry about tip, I have that covered too."

"We need to go out to dinner with him more often." Catherine remarked after Greg was out of earshot.

The group slowly made their way to the front door and stopped when Sara realized her cell phone was missing.

"I'm going to go back and check the booth, maybe it fell out of my purse during dinner." Sara said as she started walking back to where they sat. "You guys go wait out by the car, I'll be right back."

Grissom held the door open as everyone filed out in to the parking lot.

"So are you going to do it at the fountains?" Greg asked once everyone was had made their way Grissom's car.

"Do what?" Grissom replied. The question caught him off guard, forgetting that he had shown them the ring.

"Propose." Nick answered.

"That's kind of why I suggested it." Greg said. "It would give you the perfect opportunity."

"You and Catherine must be telepathic." Grissom said, putting his hands in his pockets. His nerves were already working themselves up in to a knot.

"Don't worry man." Warrick said, sensing his boss's tension. "We'll walk slow. Give you a chance to calm yourself." He clasped his hand on Grissom's shoulder as a sign of encouragement.

"Thanks." Grissom said, acknowledging Warricks sign of support.

"Now shush Sara's back." Catherine whispered just as Sara approached.

"Found it!" Sara said to the group. "It was shoved between the cushion and the wall."

Everyone smiled and offered their half-hearted congratulations. Grissom took Sara's hand and asked "Are we ready to go?"

Like Warrick had promised, the group slowly made their way to the Bellagio. In an attempt to calm Grissom's nerves Catherine told a story from when she first came to Vegas, how beautiful she thought the city was at night. Greg followed with his own stories. Nick told of Texas, and Warrick spoke of growing up in 'Sin City'. Sara remained quiet by his side, occasionally making a comment or two about her life in Vegas.

When they finally reached the fountains Sara ran up to the wrought iron fence and looked across the length of the water. "You know, I've lived in Vegas for almost seven years and I have never stopped to watch the show." she said to no one in particular.

"It's beautiful." Warrick said, walking up to where she stood. "Even though I've lived here my entire life, each time I watch it it's like seeing it for the first time."

Sara smiled at him and replied, "I hope it'll take my breath away."

"Oh, it will." He replied, giving her a bright smile; of course knowing the possibility of how this evening could end.

Grissom, who had hung back watching Sara's interactions with Warrick, made his way up to Sara and wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her close. The world around them dissolved in to black leaving only them, as it's inhabitants. He noticed that she seemed lost in a trance, gazing out across the fountains waiting for the famous light and water show to start.

Nick and Greg stood on one side of Sara while Catherine and Warrick were on the other. Each pair was astonished at how intimate Grissom's gesture was, and that Sara was more than happy to have his arms wrapped around her.

As the street lights around the fountain dimmed Catherine glanced over at Grissom, amazed at how far he had come. It seemed like yesterday when she helped him pick out a plant to send to Sara after an earth shattering argument. As much as she hated to think or admit it, her little emotionally inept Grissom was all grown up.

"I love you Sara." Grissom whispered in to her hair. The smell of her shampoo overwhelmed him, sending his mind reeling through all the moments they had shared together in the past twelve years. And for the first time in his life he felt that awe and amazement of love, true and pure love. It was so overpowering that he felt the unfamiliar sting of tears threatening to fall. He could feel her relax in his arms, when he spoke of love to her.

"Sara…" he began. Grissom opened his mouth but the words he had planned seemed trite and silly. He paused, trying to quickly think of a quote, a saying, something to say to break the tension but his mind seemed to be blank. He was at a loss for words, words other than those that he was trying to say.

"Is this it?" Greg quietly asked Nick, who like Warrick and Catherine was paying more attention to Grissom and Sara than to the water show in front of him.

"If Grissom can summon up enough courage to ask her, then yes Greg, it is it." Nick replied.

Grissom looked anxiously around him and caught the eyes of Nick and Greg. They both smiled and nodded, giving him their silent approval to marry their 'sister'. Catherine and Warrick did the same when he glanced in their direction; their approval was all he needed to say those two words.

"Marry me." Grissom whispered. It wasn't a question, but it didn't qualify as a demand, it was a request made by a man who had wasted too much time being unsure of his feelings.

She tensed up but never turned around to look at him, her eyes closed as she tried to capture the tears that slowly made their way down her cheeks. Sara quietly attempted to convince herself that he didn't ask what he did; it was just a figment of her overactive imagination. It couldn't be real…he didn't have a ring.

"Marry me Sara." He repeated sensing her uncertainty. Grissom removed the ring from his pocket and held it in front of her.

Sara's eyes finally opened and saw the ring that he held up before her. The three words echoed in her head, bouncing, spinning, and finally settling comfortably in her mind. All the emotions, tears, hopes, fears, doubts that had occupied her mind all came spilling out in that moment. There was no doubt now that he did love her as much as she loved him; that he didn't date her out of pity, but because of who she was; that she wasn't broken, but normal; that it was possible for someone to love her.

Grissom heart sank when Sara let out a small sob when she saw the ring. He had hurt her. He made her cry. Crying could only mean one thing, 'No'. He closed his eyes and all the self-doubts overwhelmed him, sending his emotions over the edge. He would be alone for the rest of his life; life wasn't even worth living without her in it.

"Yes." Sara whispered.

Grissoms eyes shot open and his body froze. He watched as she turned around in his arms so she could face him. Sara gently placed a hand on his cheek and smoothed the skin under her thumb.

"Yes." She repeated. Two answers for two questions she thought to herself.

It was in that moment that he realized that the tears had not been from pain, but of joy.

Grissom finally took the ring, which had gone from cold metal to warm platinum, and slid it gently on her finger. She let out a small giggle amidst a sob when she felt the band slide in to place.

Sara looked at him, his deep blue eyes shimmering with emotions that he had concealed for far too long. She wore the brightest, most beautiful smile he had ever seen on any living being. Instinctively they both leaned forward, foreheads resting against each other; arms wrapped around the others waists, their tears making their way down already moistened cheeks.

Their eyes met one last time before he kissed her, with more passion and love than he had ever done before. When their lips parted it took them a moment to remember where they were and who was watching.

The rest of the team stood there, eyes wet with tears of joy, watching Sara and Grissom as they exchanged whispered 'I love you's'. After a few minutes, Sara looked up and realized that she and Grissom had been in their own universe for the past half and hour. She blushed and let out an uncharacteristic giggle when she saw Greg quickly wiping away a single tear.

Nick was the first to come forward and congratulate, "Way to go man," he said, shaking Grissoms hand. "I'm really happy for both of you, honestly." He said moving to engulf Sara in a bear hug.

"You guys deserve this." Warrick added. "More than anyone else I know." He too shook Grissoms hand and hugged Sara.

Catherine followed, offering her congratulation and embraced Grissom and Sara.

"You had us worried there for a minute Boss." Greg said, "We didn't think you were going to go through with it." All eyes were suddenly on the youngest CSI.

"Wait," Sara started turning to face the group, "you all KNEW this was going to happen tonight? And you didn't tell me?"

"Way to go Greg. You pissed off Grissom's fiancée." Nick said. "You do realize that he now has to put with Sara's temper for the rest of his life and I'm sure tonight is not the night he wanted to deal with it."

Sara face expressed her shock at Nick's reply and Grissom could barely contain his laughter. "You've waited all day to use to word 'fiancée' all day haven't you?" he asked Nick.

"Oh yea!" Nick replied.

Sara went up to each of the guys and playfully hit each of them in the stomach.

"Why is there violence?" Greg asked, mockingly rubbing the place where Sara hit him. "I'm already injured." He said referring to the incident in the car.

"Because you," she directed at Warrick and Greg, "knew that Grissom was going to propose and you didn't prepare me."

Turing to Nick she continued, "And you, because you pointed out that I have an anger problem which I do not have."

"Sara, sweetie," Grissom said, putting his hands on Sara's shoulder in an attempt to soothe her, "violence is not a good way to convince people you don't have a temper." He knew that Nick and Sara always had this playful banter but decided to go on with the joke. "Besides, I think your temper is sexy."

Her eyes widened at his comment and gently thwacked Grissom in the stomach. "Thanks for your support baby." Sara said with a smile on her face.

"Not to break the mood or anything," Catherine said as she looked at her watch, "but we've been gone for almost two hours. And I don't think the department will approve of people getting engaged on company time."

"At least they didn't get married on company time." Greg added.

Sara noticed a smile growing on Grissoms lips; he liked Greg's suggestion as much she did.


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: Part Three! I think this is going to be the last part in the series. Thanks to everyone who has reviewed. It really truly means a lot to me.

Thank you all for sticking with this story (if any of you have). I've been swamped with college stuff and haven't had time to write. The ending came to me at 6am, with no sleep. And with no sleep, I'm sure there are mistakes. But I really wanted to post this and get it out there. :)

Again, thank you all for reading (and reviewing!)

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"Not to break the mood or anything," Catherine said as she looked at her watch, "but we've been gone for almost two hours. And I don't think the department will approve of people getting engaged on company time."

"At least they didn't get married on company time." Greg added.

Sara noticed a smile growing on Grissoms lips; he liked Greg's suggestion as much she did.

"What?" Greg asked, seeing the thoughtful smiles on both Sara and Grissom's faces. "You guys… no…"

Catherine caught on to what Greg was hinting at and looked at the couple. "A wedding? Here? Now? You guys have been engaged for what, all of ten minutes."

"So?" Sara and Grissom both asked.

"It's not like we haven't talked about the possibility of a wedding." Grissom said. "In fact…"

"Wait." Nick cut in. "Sara you're not pregnant or anything are you? Is that why this is so rushed? Oh God, you're pregnant." He ran this fingers through his hair and slowly started pacing back and forth across the width of the sidewalk, occasionally murmuring something to himself.

"A Grissom off-spring?" Warrick asked. "This is too much for one night." Following Nick's lead he too paced for a moment than chose a spot on a nearby bench, head in hands, deep in thought.

"What are you going to name the…thing?" Greg said, looking slightly hopeful. "You should name it Greg. Greg's a strong, healthy name."

"Do you guys even understand the responsibility of a child?" Nick said as he stopped pacing. "You lives are you job, how are you going to find time to raise a baby? How are you going to pay for everything? A child…" Only to resume his worn track back and forth the pavement. His mind was reeling at record speeds, unable to slow down.

Grissom watched amused as the guys took their turns rambling on about raising a child, the responsibilities, and the cost.

He leaned over to Sara and whispered in to her ear, "You're not pregnant are you?" A look of worry crossed his face, hoping that there was nothing Sara had forgotten to tell him.

"Well, since we haven't 'done it' in over a week and that time of the month ended yesterday. I don't see how I could be." Sara said. "Unless I somehow got abducted by aliens, impregnated, returned to earth, and currently have inside of me an alien-hybrid also known as a super-solider. I think the possibilities are still pretty slim."

"You've been watching re-runs of 'The X-Files' haven't you?" Grissom asked, chuckling to himself.

"What else is a girl to do on her day off." Sara said smiling.

He grabbed her hand and turned to look at her, "Are you sure you want to do this?" Grissom asked. "Because you know that this will be forever and I don't want you to regret anything." His eyes seemed dark and serious, but she knew that it would take much more than Grissom's insecurities to stop her from going through with this marriage.

"I'm positive." Sara replied. "I haven't regretted spending the past year with you, I haven't regretted moving to Vegas for you, I haven't regretted waiting years for us to be together. If I haven't regretted any of those things, what makes you think I'll regret this?"

Grissom had no answer for her, he knew he had to convince himself that this wasn't her midlife crisis or done out of boredom, that she actually did love him as much as she said she did.

"I don't know." He said, "I guess it's just my insecurities showing."

"I know." Sara said smiling. It was when Grissom showed that he was human, that she could feel her heart swell with love for him.

"So what's the plan?" Warrick asked, breaking the awkward scene that the rest of the group felt when Grissom and Sara shared a private moment.

Grissom looked at his watch '10:37', just enough time for him to make a quick phone call to a old college buddy who now ran the chapel at 'Caesar's Palace'.

"I'm going to make a quick phone call, you guys talk to rest of it out." Grissom said at he dialed the number to the casino. After a moment Grissom covered the mouthpiece with a hand and said quietly, "Do you think you and Catherine could get everything done in an hour?

"An hour? Do you think we could find a dress in an hour?" Sara asked looking at Catherine.

Grissom removed his hand and began talking to the voice on the end of the line.

"Are you doubting my shopping skills?" Catherine asked, grabbing Sara by the hand and leading her away from the group. "We'll have a dress in forty-five minutes."

"Tell Grissom to call me with the details. I'll have my cell on." Sara said walking with Catherine down the strip to the nearest dress boutique, which just happened to be in Caesar's Palace.

"No problem!" Nick yelled after them. "Good luck!" All the boys waved in the direction the women where heading. Once they disappeared in to the crowed Nick turned to face Grissom who had taken a place at his side.

"We're going to need tuxes aren't we?" Greg asked, obviously not pleased with the thought of dressing up.

"If Sara's going to be wearing a dress, than it's only fair that we wear tuxes." Warrick responded.

"Good point." Said Greg. "But since I left my tux in my OTHER pants, I'm going to have to run home and pick it up… if I can even find it."

"I think that goes for all of us." Nick added.

"Not a problem. Besides I need to get a few things from home myself." Grissom said. "I'll drive us back to the station and we'll just meet back up in forty-five minutes."

Everyone agreed as they all made the walk back to Grissom's car, still parked in the diner's parking lot.

-+-+-+-+-+-

The first thing Sara did once her and Catherine found a boutique that was opened was make one of the most important phone calls on her life.

"Jim?" Sara asked in to the receiver after searching through her address book on her phone for a moment. Twenty dresses were hung up around her, some were plain white silk others had more bead and sequins than a showgirl. This was the one time that Sara wanted to explore all of her options.

"Uh oh." Brass replied on the other end of the line. "You're using the first name. Are you in trouble?"

Sara couldn't help but laugh, "No. Not this time. Can you do me a favor though?"

"Anything." He replied.

"Can you meet me at Luna's in Caesar's Palace?" Sara asked, holding the phone up and away from where the seamstress was adjusting the neckline of her dress.

After a short pause Brass replied laughing, "Sara Sidle, are you seducing me?"

"You wish." Sara replied with a laugh of her own. "Please. Can you come?" She asked, her tone changing to a more serious one.

"I know you well enough to not ask questions." He replied. "I'll be there in ten minutes. You're lucky it's a slow night."

"I know. Thanks Jim." Sara hung up the phone and looked at Catherine. "What?"

"Does he know about you and Grissom?" Catherine asked, "Cause when he steps through that door and sees you in a wedding dress, to be married to Gil Grissom out of all people, he's going to have a heart attack!"

Sara just shrugged, smiling. "Whatever happens… happens." She walked back in to the dressing room to try on the last two dresses. It happened to be the favorite choice of both her and Catherine. Crossing her fingers she hoped that it would look good.

"Easy for you to say. You're just lucky we actually found a dress shop that was open this late." Catherine replied casually looking through the dresses hung up around the fitting area. "And that it happened to be in the same building that we're supposed to meet the boys at."

"I know." Sara said. "I guess the god's are in our favor tonight."

After a moment, Catherine asked the question that had been bouncing around her head since Sara had hung up the phone with Brass. "Are you going to ask Jim to give you away?"

"Yes." Sara said as she looked at her reflection in one of the many floor length mirrors. The dress she currently had on was not her favorite, layers upon layers of taffeta made up the skirt, it was the epitome of the fairy-tale Cinderella dress, and she hated it. If she learned anything from this experience it was that poufy and her did not get along. "He's been like a father to me ever since I joined. It just seemed natural to ask him to give me away."

"What about your own father?" Catherine asked

"Did somebody call for my assistance?" Brass asked after a quick rap on the door. Taking a quick look around the room, "What the hell is going on in here?"

Catherine just shrugged, trying not to give away the secret. "You'll have to ask Sara that." She replied.

"That's what the boys said when I asked them what they were doing sauntering around the parking lot in tuxes." Brass winked at the older woman. "Hopefully it's what I think it is."

Sara poked her head around the dressing room door. "I think I found it Cat. Tell me what you think." She slowly opened the door fully to reveal a beautiful, white silk dress.

"It's nothing fancy." Sara said as she turned in place to show off the dress. "No lace, no sequins, no beads." After a thoughtful pause she continued, "Just like me."

Jim stood there staring at Sara. She noticed his gaze and turned towards him, her hands smoothing the silk around her waist.

"What do you think?" she asked him.

"What do I think?" Brass asked. "What do I think about what? Gil finally proposing to you, the gorgeous dress your wearing, or the fact that you kept me clueless for the entire drive over?"

"All of the above?" Sara answered with a slight blush.

"The dress… the dress makes you the most beautiful woman in the city." Brass said. Turning to Catherine he quickly added, "No offence to you or anything."

"None taken." Catherine replied laughing.

"Gil proposing… it's about damn time. I know I told him the same thing when he finally told me you two were together. And even then I told him to never let you go. It looks like he took my advice." Brass said, still admiring Sara in her dress. "So that's the one."

"The dress?" Sara asked. "Yup. Catherine and I have been here for a half an hour trying on dresses. And we're supposed to meet the boys downstairs in thirty minutes."

"Which reminds me that we have to still do your hair and make-up." Catherine said as she pulled Sara towards a full-length mirror and sat her down in a chair. "Give me ten minutes and you'll look like a princess."

Sara sat down in silence, deep in thought. Breaking the silence Catherine began talking about her wedding with Eddie. The color of the flowers, the cake, guests, the service, any and everything she could think of. Hearing Catherine talk was soothing the butterflies that were growing in her stomach.

"Were you nervous?" Sara finally asked.

"Nervous? Hell yes." Catherine said. "My father practically dragged me down the aisle. I thought I was making the biggest mistake of my life. But I guess my marriage to Eddie isn't the best example for you to go by."

"What about you?" Sara asked as she attempted to turn towards Brass, but Catherine's hold on her head prevented her from making any large movements.

"Me?" Brass replied. "I can't say much for my ex-wife, but I was nervous. I had my doubts, but I loved her." He stopped and slowly shook his head in response to a far-off memory. "And when I saw her, at the end of the church aisle all the doubts vanished."

Sara smiled at him, her butterflies slowly calming. She let out a long sigh and looked at herself in the mirror. What she saw surprised her; she was beautiful. For the first time in her life she could help but stare in to the face of the woman in front of her.

"Finished." Catherine replied as she slid the last bobby pin in place. She was quite proud of herself for pulling everything together in such a short notice.

"You look beautiful." Brass replied as Sara stood up to admire herself one last time before they left. He pulled her in to a hug, trying not to wrinkle the dress or smear her make up.

"Well, if you ladies are done, I'm going to get back to the station." Jim said as he made his way through the piles of dresses to the door.

"Jim?" Sara asked. He stopped and turned to look at her. She took a deep breath and continued, "Would you give me away?"

He was sure Sara and Catherine could hear his heart beating, louder and louder as the seconds passes.

"Please?" Sara looked down but caught his eyes when she looked up. "You've been like the father I never had."

He didn't need to be asked twice. "Of course."

Sara gave him one of her signature smiles that melted his heart. Now he understood why Gil could never deny her anything.

"Well then, I'll just have to call and let them know I won't be in for a while." Brass said taking out his phone. "You guys go down in the lobby and wait for me, I'll be a second."

"Come one." Catherine said, "You don't want to keep your future husband waiting."

Sara smiled at the thought, Grissom, her husband. It was something that she thought about night after night. But the reality that it really is going to happened had yet to hit her quite as hard as it did in that moment as she and Catherine were walking down the empty hallways of Caesar's Palace to the small chapel in the courtyard.

"I'm really going to do this." Sara said out loud to no one in particular. "I'm really going to marry Gil Grissom." All the butterflies she felt were gone; only a sense of peace, security, hope, was present.

"This is it." Brass said, taking his place at Sara's left side. Catherine was standing at her right and handed her a small bouquet of Lilies that she quickly picked up from the florist next to Luna's. All three stood just beyond the courtyard. Surrounding them was beautiful marble statues of Angel's playing trumpets and cherubs frozen in perpetual joy. Beyond the marble gazebo stood a waterfall illuminated by the picturesque view of Las Vegas Boulevard.

"It's perfect." Sara whispered. Brass extended his elbow towards Sara's direction and she slipped her arm through his. Catherine started walking towards the group of men who were gathered at the center of the courtyard, talking amongst them all looking extremely dashing dressed up. All of them were look out towards the neon sea before them, but Warrick was the first to sense movement from behind and he turned around to catch Catherine's smile, which was soon mirrored on his own face.

As Brass and Sara slowly made their way towards the alter Nick and Greg followed Warrick's lead and turned around to see the bride. Only Grissom had his back towards the approaching couple as a way to keep himself composed until the very last possible moment. So many things were running through his head that his mind eventually quit processing new information; so he didn't notice that Nick, Greg, and Warrick were no longer talking to him.

Brass gently kissed her on the cheek and whispered, "Go get 'em tiger."

Sara smiled and walked few feet to the alter where the priest greeted her with a toothy smile; but Grissom still had his back towards her, unaware that she was only feet behind him. She could sense his tension and prayed that one of his migraines wouldn't ruin this momentous occasion. Sara searched her mind for something to say to him to comfort and relive his worries, to remind him of a time that was important and just between them. After only a few seconds Sara's lips turned up in a smile when she knew the perfect thing to say.

"Wouldn't you if you were married to Mrs. Roper?" Sara spoke as she silently handed the bouquet of Lilies to Catherine

Grissom's head snapped up and the familiarity and memories associated with the obscure line. How could he forget the first thing that Sara Sidle said to him when she first arrived in Vegas?

Grissom's back was still turned towards her when he replied, "I don't even have to turn around. Sara Sidle." Only then, after those words spoken aloud did he dare turn around to look at her.

Sara caught his eyes and said softly back, "Not anymore."


End file.
